Haibara’s Teenage New Game+ - Volume 1 - Chapter SS1

A Library Encounter with Hoshimiya

Our school library was closer to the gym and club room buildings than the classrooms, so not many students visited it. Whenever I went, there were only ever a handful of people. But that was precisely why I liked being in the library. I actually hate it when you go to a library and it’s noisy though. But I digress. Our library was spacious, it had a lot of books, and there weren’t that many people coming in and crowding it up all the time.

After eating lunch with Reita and Tatsuya one day, I found myself in the library since I had some time to spare. I’m an introvert by nature, so being in a library or somewhere quiet just calms me down...

I was checking out the light novels when I heard someone behind me say, “Oh, hi, Natsuki-kun.”

I turned to see Hoshimiya waving at me. She was sitting by the window with a novel in her hand. “Hey, Hoshimiya. You’re here too, huh?”

“I often come here after I eat lunch,” she explained. “And after school when my club isn’t meeting.”

That’s good to know! I should start coming here more, but just enough that I won’t be annoying, I thought. “What’re you reading?”

“It’s a popular book right now! Have you heard of it?” She showed me the cover.

I nodded. “Yeah, I have.” In the future, this book would receive a movie adaptation and then sell like hotcakes. It was very good, although it was only just starting to get popular around this time.

“Have you read it before? I’m only halfway through but it’s great! I really like the relationship the main duo has! I adore relationships where two people can understand each other without needing to say anything...” Hoshimiya blissfully chattered away about the book.

I listened to her thoughtfully, one finger placed on my lips. After a moment, she blinked at me vacantly, turned bright red, and then covered her mouth with both hands. Everyone in the library was staring at us.

“S-Sorry! I get too excited when I talk about books...” Hoshimiya said quietly.

“Very like you,” I said and shrugged in acceptance. That’s a very otaku trait for a popular kid with high communication skills to have, I thought. But that’s another thing that makes her cute. She really is the best!

“O-Oh! Since you’re here, do you have any books you recommend?” she asked, trying to move past her embarrassment.

Hmmm. I only ever read light novels, so I don’t know many normal titles. I do know some famous ones, so I’ll stick to those, I thought. “What genres do you like?” I asked her.

“Hmmm. I’ll read anything, but I gravitate to mysteries the most. I also like books that are touching. Let’s see, what else?” Hoshimiya mused aloud. “I like works about adolescence. You know the ones with a lot of main characters?”

“Sounds similar to what I like! I’m not choosy, so I just try to keep up with what’s trending.”

“Really! Heh heh, that makes me kinda happy,” Hoshimiya said with a soft smile.

I cocked my head to the side and asked, “Why?”

“Of course I’d be happy; someone I’m close to likes the same stuff as me! Think about it. There aren’t many people who read for fun these days. Everyone spends their free time watching videos on YouTube and whatnot nowadays.”

Heh heh, we’re close... Hoshimiya and I are close! Heh heh heh! I relished those words, letting them float around in my mind.

“Natsuki-kun?” Hoshimiya called out.

Whoops, I went into a daze there. I wiped the creepy smile off my face and cleared my throat. “Yeah, true!” I said. “There’s all sorts of entertainment out there these days.” But at the same time, I thought, I’m sure there are fewer people who pick up books to read for fun with all the options out there. As a bona fide otaku, I honestly prefer manga over books too. They’re easier to read.

“I get it, though. It can be hard to open a book sometimes,” she said despondently.

I had a feeling that Hoshimiya’s excitement would wilt if we lingered on this topic any longer, so I pulled the conversation back to its original focus. “Anyway, I’ll recommend some books to you.”

“Really?” Her expression immediately brightened up.

I know some books that are going to become popular, and they’re recent enough that Hoshimiya probably hasn’t read them yet. Let’s go with those, I decided. “I think I saw a mystery novel I liked on that shelf over there.”

I walked over to the shelf to search for the book in question with an eager Hoshimiya in tow.